Pilgrim Images—

One way of understanding life is “life as journey.” Many people sense that they started this adventure somewhere and are going somewhere. People sense—or hope—that there is a destination.

John Bunyan, the great reforming author, wrote Pilgrim's Progress out of a conviction that the Bible teaches us to understand life as a journey. His main character, Christian, sets out on a journey along the narrow way toward the heavenly city. In presenting his story in this allegorical manner, Bunyan reminds us that nothing matters as much as single-minded attention to the journey and to the Lord of the journey.

In the Christian life, that journey is often called pilgrimage; sometimes it is called quest. The idea of pilgrimage involves a variety of images.

• One of the most common images called forth by the terms pilgrimage and quest is that of the knight. We watch as Galahad, Gawain, or the great Arthur leaves the opulence and safety of Camelot, rides out into the deep cold of an English winter, and through perilous combat and fearful challenge searches for the Holy Grail.

• We may think about Daniel Sydney Warner responding to a new vision and understanding of the church, moving outside of acceptable denominational teachings into a new world of holiness, healing, and unity.

• We may think of Thomas Merton, leaving behind a life of intellectual and worldly pleasures, to answer God's call to enter the monastery of Gethsemane in Kentucky to become a Trappist monk, taking the vows of obedience, chastity, poverty, stability—and silence.

• We may think of testimonies in church from a group of people just home from their trip to the Holy Land where they felt the Spirit of God in the land in which Jesus was born. Or we may remember a time of retreat or an international gathering of believers. Or we think of our annual trip to family camp or a national convention of Christians.

• Perhaps we are part of a group of friends who meet weekly to better understand how to live our lives in faithful ways in a world that seems to honor faithlessness more highly than constancy. Or perhaps we rise early each morning in prayerful expectancy to meet God and think through important life issues in the context of God's call on our lives.

• Sometimes, in the midst of very busy lives, we are—by ourselves—in touch with God trying to understand the mystery and the meaning of life.

• Perhaps at the coast, in the mountains, hiking through the woods, we contemplate the richness and beauty of God's world and find ourselves in communion with the great God of the universe who is also our God.

On pilgrimage the journey is as important as the destination. How you get to your destination is as important as where you are headed: You cannot go to holy places in unholy ways and expect to find God there.

So, the end and the way to the end matter equally. There is no question of the means being justified by the end—each matters greatly and equally. During the Middle Ages, persons traveled all over the world to reach holy shrines. They traveled to visit places where important spiritual battles were fought and victories won. These sites were thought of as places where miracles happened—pilgrims sensed that God was present in special ways and they wanted to be with God.

People are still on pilgrimage today. At least once in a lifetime, Muslims are to travel to Mecca; many Roman Catholics travel to Lourdes or other shrines for healing; for many the annual gathering of the Church of God in Anderson, Indiana, is a time of spiritual challenge and growth. Revivals, camp meetings, youth and children's camps, men's and women's retreats—all function as opportunities for pilgrimage.

While times of special spiritual renewal are important in the life of the believer and may be lifechanging in fundamentally significant ways, many today think of their lives in terms of life-long spiritual pilgrimage. They understand that God expects and encourages growth, that the Holy Spirit as Paraclete (the Comforter) is one who walks our walk with us, and that the end of life is eternal personal association with God that begins now, not later. They practice their discipleship as an on-going, contemporary quest for growth and fulfillment in God.

This series, Bridges: Invitation to Discipleship, is addressed to all but especially to those in the last category. This invitation is for those who seek a daily understanding and intimacy with God that informs and transforms the “dailiness” of their lives into a thrilling quest for growth, holiness, and wholeness in the context of faithful obedience to the God who calls us all forward.

Jesus Calls us

Jesus calls us to pilgrimage. This is really just another way of talking about the call to discipleship. Jesus described himself both as the Way and as the Truth—the end and the means. The church hails Jesus as “the Alpha and Omega.” He travels with us; he shows us the way; he is the end of our search; he is the means of our search. In one sense, the decision to be a pilgrim is ours; in another sense, it is at the heart of our faith—we cannot be a Christian and not be on pilgrimage.

What can this Series do for me?

Much depends on how you use it—and with the level of constancy and prayerful thoughtfulness you bring to its use. To become a pilgrim is a serious decision, for you will see what you have never seen and learn what you did not know—you will be changed in ways that you cannot now anticipate. Jesus is both a loving lord and a stern taskmaster. Lord means master. Any honest attempt to know Jesus better results in changed lives.

This series can help you become
• a more faithful Christian
• a more obedient follower of Christ
• a more effective witness
• a more thoughtful steward of the rich resources God has entrusted to you
• a prayer warrior
• a faithful model for others
• a knowledgeable and empowered believer.

In short, you will be a pilgrim—the normative state for a follower of Jesus Christ.

How can I use this Series?

Whether you are a new Christian or a seasoned traveler along the Way, you will find helpful reminders, growth measurement, and new opportunities for assessment and growth.

A. You may work with others, in small or large groups—often pilgrims travel alone, but not always.

Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales shows us a large and motley group of pilgrims on their way to Canterbury Cathedral, enjoying themselves greatly along the way.

When the sweet showers of April follow March,
Piercing the dryness to the roots that parch,
Bathing each vein in such a flow of power
That a new strength's engendered in the flower
When, with a gentle warmth, the west-wind's breath
Awakes in every wood and barren heath
The tender foliage, when the vernal sun
Has half his course within the Ram to run—
When the small birds are making melodies,
Sleeping all night (they say) with open eyes
(For nature so within their bosom rages)—
Then people long to go on pilgrimages,
And palmers wander to the strangest strands
For famous shrines, however far the lands.
Especially from every shire's end
Of England's length to Canterbury they wend,
Seeking the martyr, holiest and blest
Who helped them, healed their ills, and gave them rest.
(Chaucer, 1, 1–18)

Jesus traveled all around Galilee with his disciples, teaching them as they walked from town to town.

[Jesus] went up the mountain and called to him those whom he wanted, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, and to be sent out to proclaim the message, and to have authority to cast out demons. So he appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); James son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. (Mark 3:13–19, NRSV)

Working with a group of kindred spirits, enjoying a pilgrimage together, can deepen your growth and provide accountability—an important element of the pilgrim life.

B. You can pilgrimage with a friend, your pastor, a mentor, or another person of accountability in your life—trusting another person to work with you on your pilgrimage can in itself be a growth experience.

Philip walked alongside the Ethiopian eunuch, engaged him in spiritual conversation, and led him to Jesus. The level of trust and transparency involved in such intimacy can be great and is nearly always rewarding—as difficult, risky, and threatening as it usually is. Some churches and denominations have persons of recognized wisdom and gifts who, as spiritual directors and counselors, can help you, providing companionship, guidance, feedback, a helpful road map, and accounting for your journey.

C. As a teacher, you may use it in the classroom to help your students develop their own sense of journey and pilgrimage.

It is never too early or too late to begin a pilgrimage. Even persons who have been Christians for many years can profit from a new look at old ideas; perspectives change and new approaches help us to think about growth and spirituality in new ways. Many times people come to this understanding late in life when they are wondering about a sense of purpose in light of the significant changes in their life—the birth of a child, the death of a parent, retirement, a serious illness, or just aging. Helping students to understand the idea of life as a pilgrimage, at any stage of development, can make a difference in coping with life's adventures. A Sunday school class, a new Christian study program, a core youth study group, a mid-week Body Life program, even a Sunday evening general study group—each can bring about new challenge and growth for persons of all ages.

D. A personal, individual journey is also possible using this series—many people at different stages of life seek to grow as disciples.

They want times of assessment and evaluation; they seek challenge and growth; they want the opportunity to think about and reflect on life while they are living it. A pilgrimage back to the basics of our faith is one means to bring this about. A careful thoughtful study of “what the Bible teaches us” can result in a personal assessment of life at a given juncture in life. Keeping a spiritual journal (or diary) makes possible a more personal assessment than might be possible in a larger group. Sometimes accountability to oneself, before God, is the highest level of accountability. It is very difficult to tell yourself a lie. Such an approach allows for greater opportunity to internalize the teachings of the Bible and to grow closer to the One to whom the Bible witnesses.

Rules and Understandings for the Journey

In all of these ways to pilgrimage, be certain that you understand the ground rules. This is especially necessary if you are traveling with a companion or group of companions, but is no less true for an individual. Agreeing on the parameters, the question of confidentiality, what constitutes “no-man's land,” and other such important considerations can make a great difference along the way. You may want to change those rules as you go along, but always begin with a set of understandings that each person contributes to, understands, and agrees with.

Advance Agreements

Agree in advance about specific limits to the time together; all travel is done in stages. Individually and corporately, people need time to reflect and to assimilate. Reflection is a missing element in our lives—we are all too busy. Agree in advance about rights to not pursue an issue and the language allowed to end discussion. This is centrally important. People need to feel safe or at least in control. Fear and lack of control can be great opportunities for growth; they can also be great opportunities for turning back or running off the path and getting lost. People need to set limits so that they may feel safe to step outside those limits—they have a secure base to which to return. The glow of a fire can increase the darkness outside of the circle of light. Agree in advance about how to pull the plug when an individual or group is getting in “over their heads.”

Agree in advance about any subjects that are not open for discussion. This should work both ways—what one individual is not ready to talk about and what kinds of issues the group may not want to discuss.

Agree in advance about appropriate responses. A pilgrimage is a journey and people are at different stages on that journey. In fact, this is one of the best reasons to go in a group. But because one person has successfully accomplished an important part of the journey does not automatically make that person an authority on all other persons traveling that part of the road. One person's unsuccessful attempts do not constitute failure, only another opportunity for growth.

Agree in advance about the role of prayer and silence on the journey. Pilgrimages are not simply times to talk; there is need for silence and prayer. As an individual pilgrim or as a group of pilgrims, make time for both. Reflection is at the heart of growth. Taking the time to think about the meaning and importance of events provides both a sense of growth and accomplishment as well as a motivation and direction for the next stage.

Why These Books?

This series, Bridges: Invitation to Discipleship, is provided as a means for individual or collective pilgrimage. Its purpose is to help you to understand your life as a pilgrim, open to the leading of the Holy Spirit, eager to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, and acknowledging and experiencing the sovereignty of God.

The individual subjects of this series were chosen because they address continuing issues in the life of the pilgrim Christian. There is never a time when we achieve closure in terms of understanding, knowledge, and actualization of these. Whether a pilgrim is just starting out on a pilgrimage, a new Christian, or closer to the end of a quest, each of us needs to continue to “press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14, NRSV). Each of these subjects continues to be a point of conviction and reward.

Invitation to Pilgrimage—This book is the introduction to the series, designed to help the pilgrim understand the purpose and the direction of the pilgrim life. While it is primarily a guide to the other texts, it also raises opportunity for growth, reflection, and purpose.

First and Last Things: The Certainty of Eternal Life—This opening book is a guide to understanding the fundamentals of the faith. What must I know and understand to be saved and continue living as a Christian? What foundation must I pour in order to build a strong and vibrant faith?

Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” (John 3:3, NRSV)

The Bible: Our Guide for Daily Living—At the heart of the Christian understanding of God, the people of God, and the world is a book that contains for the believer what God revealed to us about the nature of God, human nature, and nature. We use the Bible to understand who God is and what God expects of us in this world. What are normative forms of behavior? How should we treat our fellow human beings and the world in which we all live? How and why do I worship God—and nothing and no one else? Who is Jesus Christ, and what is the Holy Spirit?

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 3:14–15, NRSV)

Prayer: An Enjoyable Experience—Prayer is the great resource of the believer. It is the one resource that ties us to God and allows us to talk with our Creator. Without the honest and constant practice of prayer in all its forms and uses—growth and pilgrimage are defeated before any attempt to start.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. (1 Thessalonians 5:16–19, NRSV)

The Holy Spirit: Power to Be Like Jesus—The world is a hard place to live; being faithful in such a hard world is even harder. God knows and understands this reality and has not left us comfortless. The Holy Spirit is God with us and in us; the Holy Spirit is about presence and comfort and guidance. To live a victorious life, believers need to know, understand and appropriate this Holy Spirit of God—God's empowering presence.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate [that is, helper] to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. (John 14:16–17, NRSV)

The People of God: Identifying the Church—We are not alone; we are part of a group of persons who accept the Lordship of Jesus Christ. It is called the church; it is the Body of Christ. We are called the people of God. It is both reality and mystery. We need the church and the church needs us. We are called into fellowship in order to be strengthened and encouraged and empowered.

For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. (Romans 12:4–5, NRSV)

Faith: Our experience in Action—This word means many things; it is about believing and what we believe—and the relationship between them. It is about trust and confidence. It is about our own inadequacies and what God provides for us to overcome those shortcomings. It is about risk and victory. It is a very hard word to understand; it is a very difficult concept to put feet on; however, it is a vitally important key to pilgrimage and growth.

No distrust made [Abraham] waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. (Romans 4:20–21, NRSV)

Telling Others: A Witnessing Lifestyle—Once we are grabbed by the truth, we have a major responsibility to introduce others to the truth. We do this in a variety of ways, but it all comes down to one person telling another about the power of God in their life. One person said that evangelism is nothing more or less than one hungry beggar telling another hungry beggar where she found food.

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. God therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age. (Matthew 28:18–20, NRSV)

Temptations: Victory over Persistent Problems—We are called into relationship, first with God and second with our fellow humans, but those relationships have expectations. God has expectations. We cannot live anyway we choose. We are to live in conformity with the will of God and according to a high moral standard. And we cannot live alone—no matter how hard we try In the church, in society, at work, at home—we are in relationship and those relationships require responsibility All of the virtues of Christian living are tied to being in relationship to God and to our fellow human beings. We are responsible, and we will be held accountable, even as we hold others accountable.

“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” [Jesus] said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:36–40, NRSV)

Three other texts are to be published in this series: Stewardship: The Lordship of Jesus Christ and the Whole Person—The care and feeding of the world in which we live is a major responsibility of the believer. Jesus calls us to give of ourselves in all aspects of our lives to the demands of his kingdom. We are to be responsible for our talents, our time, our finances; but we are also called to care for the world we live in—believers and non-believers—and the natural world. Jesus calls us to be good stewards. (To be published.)

Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received. (1 Peter 4:10, NRSV)

The Church of God: A Distinctive and Unifying Vision for a Broken World and a Divided Church—The Church of God (Anderson, Indiana) is the result of personal reflection and Holy Spirit direction and was called into being to remind the church that Jesus is its Lord and Head and that believers are his body. This brief introduction to the distinctive teachings of the Church of God will teach new pilgrims and remind old pilgrims of the distinctive purpose of this movement.

Jesus Christ: The Head of the Church—At the heart of the Christian life is the reality of Jesus Christ. It is Jesus who is Lord. It is Jesus who defines what it means to be a pilgrim. It is Jesus who is the way, the truth, and the life. This brief introduction to the person and power of the resurrected Christ in the pilgrimage of all Christians will provide the center around which each of the other texts revolve.

An Invitation

Bridges: Invitation to Discipleship is an invitation to pilgrimage. Whether you are a new or long time believer, this series can help you grow stronger and deeper in your Christian faith. It is designed to help you to think or re-think what the fundamental truths of our faith are and help you to respond to this strategically important question:

How do these truths apply to my (our) life at this time in my (our) life?

Journal: Why am I starting this pilgrimage?

Journal: What is my goal

Journal: What is my commitment?

Journal: Who should I tell about my pilgrimage?

Journal: What words or images would I use to describe my relationship to Jesus at the beginning of this journey?

Journal: How much time will I devote to this journey?
Daily? [ ] Monthly? [ ]
Specifically: I commit to spend to my pilgrimage:
[ ] minutes each day,
[ ] each week, or
[ ] each month.

What is my creed?

I believe about God:

I believe about Jesus:

I believe about the Holy Spirit:

I believe about the church:

I believe about the nature of human beings:

I believe about my responsibilities as a believer:

I believe about life after death:

I believe about my relationship with God: Chapter Two
Life is a Pilgrimage

They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth, for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them. (Hebrews 11:13–16, NRSV)

So far we have talked about pilgrimage and growth in very intentional terms—intentional in the sense that the pilgrimage begins with a felt need, a sense of inadequacy, a need for purpose and meaning, a desire to grow beyond the present limitations of vision or faith, or the need to understand what cannot be explained with current vocabulary or information. A person reaches a point and says, “I cannot continue like this; I will not take it any longer; I need to know, to understand, to change.” This kind of pilgrimage is intentional—you do not know where it will end, but you do know when it begins and that you are serious about it.

On the other hand, someone has said that from the minute you are conceived, you begin to grow—and begin to die. In one very important sense, life is a pilgrimage and we are pilgrims—whether we like it that way or not. Whatever else happens to you, no matter how hard you may work at keeping change limited and under control, you cannot avoid it. Two famous pre-Socratic philosophers argued about the nature of change. They both agreed that change is the most basic factor of human existence. They both thought it was the basic truth about the universe—everything changes.

Unavoidable Change

They agreed and they disagreed. They agreed about the omnipresent reality of change. What they argued about was the rate of that change. One, Heraclitus, provided us with one of the most famous axioms from western philosophy:

“You cannot step into the same river twice.”

Heraclitus believed that change was so fundamental and constant that the river is a different river by the time your second foot enters it. However, his student Parmenides argued that change was an even greater constant. He said:

“You cannot step into the same river once.”

Change is so constant, so pervasive, and so absolute, Parmenides argued, that the river you think about stepping into is already a different river when you actually get your feet wet.

We cannot escape change. We must learn to adapt, therefore, we must learn to grow. Much of this growth follows a stimulus-response method. Something happens and a response occurs. “I don't have time to think about it, let alone reflect on it,” we might think, “so I must make a decision. I often regret those quick responses, and I'm not sure that much real growth takes place, but I'm not sure what I can do about them. Life is just that way.”

Journal: On the Change Scale, my life is more like Heraclitus or like Parmenides?

Heraclitus Parmenides
1.....2.....3.....4.....5.....6.....7.....8.....9.....10

Currently the factors demanding the greatest change and growth in my life are:

Life is Hard and Then you Die

Much of the philosophy of our age has presented us with this kind of picture: Life is hard and then you die. There is little meaning to life, if any. We are born, we live and we die; there is no certainty beyond the current minute; no larger meaning to our life. In fact, life may be meaningless. A major philosophical influence of our century is the Existentialist school of thought. While there are many variations in this system, there are some basic themes:

The most fundamental of those themes is the meaninglessness or purposelessness of life: the most anyone can say with any certainty about their self is that it is.

I am—this phrase, however, is not be confused with the biblical I AM. The existentialist I am is a statement of existence: I exist. Whether or not there is more cannot be said; certainly, no one would be able to prove it. For centuries in the west, philosophers and theologians assumed that being and meaning were givens. The technical language said, Essence (being) precedes existence. The nature of being and the meaning of meaning may be open to interpretation, they argued, but their existence and our ability to know them were accepted.

Whether people understand it or not, whether they know it or not, there is a level of being in which they participate that gives their life meaning. Aristotle and Plato understood this in terms of forms and ideas; theologians talked about it in terms of God.

Journal: I believe that the most fundamental truth about me is

Existentialists, however, came to argue the opposite—people create their own meaning. Existence precedes essence (being). Such meaning, however, is not absolute, and is indeed ultimately meaningless. It is not external to the person, but is only for me and ends with me. Life is Absurd

In fact, the existentialists argue that, more than meaningless, life is absurd. One famous drama from the “theater of the absurd” shows us persons in careful preparation to listen to a person speak the truth to the world. When the oracle finally opens its mouth, to speak the truth, we hear only the gibberish of baby talk.

In other words, the end of life is the grave, and suicide may be the best, even the most appropriate way out. Any meaning we develop to make life easier will ultimately come to the same end. It is a vapor which leaves us as the vapor of our breath leaves us at death.

So, persons seek their happiness as an end in itself. Happiness is the good that governs their life, but happiness is defined often in terms of gratification. They respond to the stimuli around them in ways that produce their greatest level of comfort and security—often regardless of the good of others. B. F. Skinner argued that all of life, from the “highest” forms to the “lowest,” is governed by this reality.

Journal: I believe that life is more or less than

Vladimir Nabokov, the twentieth century Russian novelist, wrote the following in his autobiography, Speak, Memory:

The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.

The most anyone can hope for is some activity, some commitment, some idea, some goal that provides the illusion of happiness and meaning.

Life is comprised of a series of choices that lead in no particular direction and have no larger purpose, other than our own temporary sense of well-being.

Imago dei—Life has Meaning

But the stimulus-response model and the existentialist model are not what the Christian life is about. We are children of God, created in the image of God, called to be in relationship with the Lord God who created heaven and earth—and us.

These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created.

In the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of the field had yet sprung up—for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground; but a stream would rise from the earth, and water the whole face of the ground—then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:4–7, NRSV, emphasis added).

Journal: What is my response to the idea that I am a living soul? What evidence is there in my daily life that there is more to me than my physical self?

Scripture and the church teach that humans have a spirit of life within them that is the direct result of God's initial and continuing act of creation. St. Augustine wrote about a “God-shaped vacuum” in us that can be filled only by God. One way to read this familiar account from Genesis is that God “breathed into these human nostrils the breath of life, and humanity possessed a living soul.” Some scholars suggest that this passage might be understood as telling us that in this very intimate act of creation God's Spirit became our spirit and that we became living personalities, and that this is the act by which humans became persons.

Journal: What do I see in myself that tells me that I am “created in the image of God”? What qualities and characteristics express this intimate relationship I have with the Creator—God?

It is this act of giving life in Eden, and God's continued breathing of life into us, that provides the distinctive spiritual dimension of human life—a dimension not characteristic of other forms of life.

Journal: At this stage in my understanding, I would define pilgrimage as

This dimension makes it possible for humans to understand themselves in a larger context of meaning, to have a sense of destiny and direction, to articulate and discuss the world around them and the creator of the world, to formulate and pursue a purpose that is beyond them and that contributes to the larger well-being of others, the world, and the kingdom of God. Our creatureliness, which is a short hand way of talking about our basic relationship to God, is the quality in us that makes it possible for us to be on pilgrimage on purpose. For our creatureliness directly ties us to God. All that makes up who we are in our most fundamental being comes directly to us from God.

Journal: Where am I going

“Created in the image of God” does not mean that we are created for a life of ease. We are called to be righteous. We are designed to be righteous, that is, living life as God means it to be lived, as it is displayed to us in the creation narratives of Genesis, but our righteousness is to be by choice. God desires that we choose to be like God and to realize in our daily living as fully as possible the who we are in our most fundamental being that comes directly to us from God.

Journal: At this stage in my development, what is my goal?

What is a Pilgrimage?

The fundamental assumption of life as pilgrimage is that who we are, what we do, and how we live our lives matters. Scripture calls us to a life of intentional pilgrimage. Pilgrimage means traveling to a destination in a state of awareness and a state of grace—aware of what is going on and who travels with us. It is concerned with how we travel, where we stop over, and the goal. It assumes a reflective spirit.

Journal: Why do I want to go on pilgrimage? How serious am I about it? I understand that Jesus is speaking these warnings to me, but do I take them seriously?

A destination—While many people today reject the notion that life is purposeless, many appear to live as if it were. If the question, “where are you going?” were posed to them, they would answer in terms of an end to their work, that is, retirement; an end to a particular task, that is, getting the house painted or the garden put in; or some other time-space context. Few would answer this question in terms of “being.” Pilgrimage is ultimately about being: the destination question in this context has less to do with time and space and more to do with becoming a person. If people get beyond the time-space questions, it is to talk about heaven, but even in this context, our conversation has more to do with doing than with living. We are more often asking and discussing the question, “What must I do to enter the kingdom of heaven?” rather than the pilgrim question “How can I live in that kingdom now?”

Journal: How much attention do I pay to the world and the people around me? How much time do I spend listening for God? What can I do to stay alert to what is going on around me, and to listen more carefully to God's call?

Intentional—Within the larger and mostly inevitable pilgrimage of life, the pilgrimage that Jesus calls us to and that God has made us for, begins with a decision. One doesn't simply fall into becoming a pilgrim. One decides to become a pilgrim and to go on pilgrimage with at least the same seriousness as one decides to marry, to have children, to change jobs, and to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord—it is a highly serious decision. There is the same seriousness about pilgrimage as Jesus talked about in terms of plowing:

As they were going along the road, someone said to [Jesus], “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Another said, I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God. (Luke 9:57–62, NRSV)

Aware of what is going on—Life is full of demands on our time and attention. We live in a hucksters' paradise: everyone wants, indeed, demands our attention. Radio and television are the two largest culprits, but a drive down Main Street in AnyTown reveals that they are only the most obvious ones. Billboards, bus stop benches, sides of buildings, telephone poles, bumper stickers, even the windshield wipers of our cars become message centers carrying reminders and information and demands to buy, to come, to visit, to exchange, and to give. There are rare moments in a day when we are not being asked to buy something from someone. The demands are so great and so constant that we work hard at not paying attention, but that has side effects that are equally costly. If we quit hearing and seeing, what might we miss? At the risk of being overwhelmed, a pilgrim must be vigilant—must pay attention. God speaks to the pilgrim in so many different ways, in so many different places, and at so many different times. To turn off the senses and quit paying attention may bring great loss.

In John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, when Christian quit paying attention to the earliest admonition on his journey, that is, to stick to the straight and narrow path, he lost his way. When he shifted his attention off the path, Castle Despair and the Slough of Despond became his prisons; Vanity Fair became a great and beautiful temptation and an even greater, more dangerous trap. A more appropriate approach is found in an ancient prayer that calls upon God to transform our awareness so that one really sees and hears what is needed:

God be in my head, and in my understanding;
God be in mine eyes and in my looking,
God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;
God be in my heart, and in my thinking;
God be at mine end, and at my departing. Amen.

Journal: What changes will I have to make in order to build more time for reflection into my life? What changes am I willing to make?

This ancient prayer is in the spirit of the words about Abraham written in Hebrews:

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked forward to the city that has foundations whose architect and builder is God. (Hebrews 11:8–10, NRSV)

Reflective—The ability to see and hear clearly is only the beginning. One of the most often repeated judgments about the world we live in is that there is no time to “stop and smell the roses.” We live in a world in which time is measured in nano-seconds and news has been reduced to sound bytes. Distance is no longer measured in miles but in time-to-destination. Distances that were once measured in months are now measured in hours; by satellite, distance is for all intents and purposes eliminated. Information that once traveled by mail over a few days is now broken down into electronic impulses and faxed in seconds. Even these obvious changes have happened in less than a lifetime. Persons who once crossed the country by covered wagon, taking months, now fly over the same distance in hours.

An equally obvious statement is that this shortening of time has not added anything to the amount of free time. Neither has it improved the quality of our lives. In fact, it seems the opposite has occurred. We live under greater pressure; decisions must come sooner and more often with insufficient time to think about implications and consequences. So many of these innovations in technology promised to be labor saving and, in fact, are. Yet the other promise—to improve the quality of life and the time to enjoy it—is a miserable lie.

At great cost and with unpredictable consequence, we have lost the opportunity to reflect.

Reflection is the key to spiritual and psychological wholeness; wholeness is the basis for health. Reflection is the time we take to think a out the meaning of life, about what is happening to us, and about what we are doing. Reflection is the way we address our being. What does this experience, this new insight, this person, this event teach me about myself, about God, about the world I live in, and about my purpose and direction in life? What can I learn about how I should live?

Several years ago Francis Schaeffer raised this question as a title of one of his books, How Then Shall We Live? The answer to this question can be found only by taking time to stop and consider it. This is fundamental to all human life; it is essential for the Christian.

Taking time to think and ruminate on events going on around us, the lives of other persons, the terrible ethical dilemmas that confront us daily, the meaning of the illness or death of loved one—without such reflective time, little is learned and much is lost.

When the agenda that is provided for us in the life and teachings of Jesus is added to the question, reflection becomes even more of an imperative.

Journal: What are the important events, ideas, teachings, realities that I need to spend time thinking about and reflecting on?

Jesus asks us to think carefully about the world we live in and our role in it, but from within a certain context. We are not free to be private Christians. We must have a personal theology, but we may not have a private theology. The context of our faith is the one defined by one of the most ancient of church teachings (earliest known origins in the 3rd or 4th century of the Christian era), the Apostles' Creed.

Creed is an anglicized Latin term. It comes from the opening word of the Apostles' Creed: Credo—“I believe.” It is a statement of belief. The Latin origins of this word are significant in that they emphasize the fundamental nature of such a set of beliefs. These origins suggest that the meaning had more to do with giving your heart to something or someone rather than simple intellectual assent.

Nonetheless, a creed is an attempt to define the dogma of the church. Dogma, a term we often associate with the more negative term dogmatic, means simply that a particular set of beliefs is the central, authoritative set of teachings or understandings. Doctrine is the term that describes a particular or specific interpretation of a dogma. For example, baptism is central in the teaching of the historical Christian church; there are very few exceptions. Nearly all Christian faiths and denominations practice baptism, yet not all practice it in the same way. The ways in which we practice our faith (dogma) are doctrines (eg, infant dedication rather than infant baptism, baptism by immersion or sprinkling, baptism as salvation).

An Irreducible Minimum

Holding an unusual cross-denominational authority, this centuries old creed, then, formulates the central dogma of the church: it is an irreducible minimum. Below this, you cannot go. This is what the church—the historical community of faith—says we mean (or should mean) when we call ourselves Christians. It is the church's way of saying this is what you give your whole self to, a matter of the mind and heart.

The Apostles' Creed

I believe in God the Father
almighty, creator of heaven
and earth; and in Jesus Christ,
his only son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the
Holy Spirit,
born from the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was
crucified, dead, and buried,
descended to hell,
on the third day rose again
from the dead, ascended
to the heavens, sits at the
right hand of God the Father
almighty, thence will come to
judge, the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit;
the holy catabolic church,
the communion of saints,
the remission of sins,
the resurrection of the flesh,
and eternal life. Chapter Three
The Reflective Christian

The reflective Christian, then, needs time to ask and to think about the meaning of this set of beliefs in light of what is going on in the world. More importantly, the reflective Christian needs time to ask and think about what is going on in the world and what his or her response to it should be in light of this set of beliefs and the community of faith of which he or she is a part.

Paul and the Reflective Life

Paul was an eager, zealous, and successful persecutor of the early church. In Acts we read that Paul was a witness to the martyrdom of Stephen. Luke writes, “And Saul (his name before becoming a follower of Jesus) approved of their killing him” (Acts 8:1, NRSV). But there is more:

That day a severe persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him. But Saul was ravaging the church by entering house after house; dragging off both men and women, he committed them to prison. (Acts 8:1–3, NRSV—Emphasis added)

The emphasis is not inappropriate, for in chapter 9, Luke uses the words “threats and murder” to describe Paul's attitude and activity. In the NIV translation of Acts 8:3, Luke tells us that Saul “began to destroy the church.” Paul was devoted to his beliefs and devoted to the elimination of this heretic band of persons called Christians. Yet, in the “Damascus Road Experience,” an event familiar to all Christians, Paul is knocked off his horse, thrown to the ground, and blinded. Jesus appears to him, calling his name, and calling his deeply held convictions into deep question. (See Acts 9:1–9.)

I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

With these words Paul must move from his conviction that the Christians are wrong, dangerous, and to be destroyed to a whole new perspective. His paradigm shifts; it is no longer possible for him to dismiss this new notion.

Paul the Pilgrim

How does such a dramatic change come about? Apparently through a time of reflection.

Scholars often disagree about the length of time, but they do agree that Paul did not get up off the desert floor and begin his missionary journeys. There followed a time of reflection; it is not easy to move from one extreme position to another. It is especially difficult when one is as intelligent and public as Saul seems to have been.

The Damascus road experience did more than shake him off of his horse; it shook him to the very ground of his being. All that he had believed in, lived for, and lived by changed in one blinding flash and with one undeniable question and one surprising response: “ ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ ‘Who are you. Lord?’ ” (Acts 9:4–5 NIV). The one whom he persecuted is now called Lord.

The Greek and Hebrew understanding of the meaning of conversion is that one turns around (or returns) and heads in a new direction. The turning requires reflection because conversion implies new understanding. “I was blind, but now I see!” (John 9:25)

Little is know about the time immediately following Paul's conversion except that he spent approximately three years in reflection before he made his first “Christian” trip to Jerusalem. We know that he spent part of his time in Damascus and part in Arabia, near Damascus (see Galatians 1:17, Acts 9:19 and 22). We also know that after his time in Jerusalem with Peter and James, he returned to Tarsus as an “independent” missionary for approximately ten years (Galatians 1:21 and Acts 9:30).

These have been called the silent years, and we can only conclude that they were highly reflective times; they certainly were formative times. No doubt he thought deeply about his roots in light of his new Lord. No doubt he reflected much upon his own attempts to destroy the followers of Jesus. No doubt he prayed for forgiveness, understanding, and faith. No doubt he reflected much about the theological underpinnings of his new faith. No doubt he gave much thought to the reality and meaning of the Cross and the Tomb.

Out of this period of reflection emerged three realities:
• a new person, committed to the Living Reality of the Crucified and Resurrected Jesus;
• a new faith, articulated and structured around the Person of the Crucified and Resurrected Jesus;
• an enlightened call for all persons to confess the lordship of the Crucified and Resurrected Jesus.

Out of these three developments the Christian faith exploded.

Journal: At the conclusion of this book, these are my most important insights:

Chapter Four
Your Invitation—RSVP

A thoughtfully, prayerfully reflective Christian is what this series is about—whether you are a newly born Christian or one a long time on the Way seeking to return to “first things.” It is about growth, direction, and purpose. It is about taking Jesus seriously, trusting him to be the means and the end of your salvation, and the basis and focus of your continuing growth in him.

A pilgrim is one who sets off in a new direction—after a call by God to move on. A pilgrim is one who says,

This is no longer the way I choose to be. God is calling me to a new city whose foundations are eternal. In the light of this call and the person of Jesus Christ, this system or idea or paradigm or creed or way of thinking and of living no longer makes sense. I feel a call in a new direction, and I must understand what this call means; I must understand what I have believed in light of this new call.

Welcome to the Way!

My Covenant

I sense a deeply felt desire to make a more serious commitment to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I desire to explore more thoroughly the relationship between what I believe and how I live my life. I desire greater growth in my faith-life.

Therefore, I make this covenant. It is between me and God (and, if appropriate, this group). It is a covenant to be a pilgrim and set out on the way to know more intimately the one who is the Way. I seek on this pilgrimage to embrace as fully as I am able and as wholly as the Spirit allows the meaning and intent of this call:

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
(Philippians 2:5–8, NRSV)

______________________________________________________ Signed/dated

[ The End ]